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Quizzes > Science

Which Is Not a Property of Minerals? Quiz

Quick, free properties of minerals quiz with instant results.

Editorial: Review CompletedCreated By: Jason WangUpdated Aug 23, 2025
Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper-cut mineral shapes and quiz headline on teal background inviting quiz takers to test mineral properties.

Use this quiz to decide which is not a property of minerals and review key traits like hardness, luster, cleavage, and streak. Keep learning with our mineral identification quiz, compare changes with the physical vs chemical properties quiz, or take the mineral id quiz for a quick check.

Which of the following is not a property commonly used to identify minerals?
Elasticity
Color
Hardness
Luster
Mineral identification relies on hardness, luster, color, streak, cleavage, and other properties. Elasticity refers to how a material deforms and returns to shape, which is not a standard diagnostic criterion for minerals. Thus elasticity is not used in most identification tests.
Which property measures the resistance of a mineral to being scratched by another substance?
Streak
Hardness
Cleavage
Density
Hardness is defined by the Mohs scale as a mineral's resistance to scratching by another material. Cleavage describes how it splits, density is mass per volume, and streak is the color of powder. Hardness remains one of the most reliable diagnostic tests.
Which term describes the color of a mineral's powder when rubbed on an unglazed porcelain plate?
Tenacity
Fracture
Luster
Streak
Streak is the color of the powdered form of a mineral, observed on a porcelain plate. Luster, fracture, and tenacity describe reflection, breakage pattern, and resistance to breakage respectively. Streak often remains consistent even when surface color varies.
Which property refers to the way a mineral reflects light?
Streak
Luster
Specific gravity
Density
Luster describes how light interacts with the surface of a mineral, whether metallic, glassy (vitreous), dull, or other types. Streak relates to powder color, density and specific gravity deal with mass and volume, not light reflection. Luster is a key visual diagnostic feature.
Which of these is not a standard mineral property used in identification tests?
Cleavage
Specific gravity
Malleability
Streak
Malleability - how a material deforms under pressure - is characteristic of metals, not of most minerals. Minerals break along cleavage or fracture, have specific gravity, and yield streaks when powdered. Therefore malleability is not used as a diagnostic mineral property.
Which of the following describes a mineral that breaks along smooth, flat surfaces?
Hardness
Cleavage
Fracture
Luster
Cleavage is the tendency of a mineral to split along defined planes related to its crystal structure. Fracture is irregular in contrast. Luster and hardness refer to light reflection and scratch resistance, not break patterns. Cleavage planes aid in mineral identification.
Which of the following is NOT a method geologists use to determine mineral hardness?
Penny scratch test
Burning test
Nail scratch test
Fingernail scratch test
Hardness tests involve scratching minerals with known materials like nails, pennies, or fingernails. A burning test has no role in measuring scratch resistance. Burning can alter chemical composition rather than indicate hardness. Therefore it's not a recognized hardness method.
Which of the following is NOT a recognized type of mineral luster?
Adamantine
Metallic
Porcelain
Vitreous
Metallic, vitreous (glassy), and adamantine (diamond-like) are standard lusters. Porcelain refers to the material of a streak plate, not the way minerals reflect light. Luster categories describe surface appearance only. Porcelain is not a luster type.
Which property describes how a mineral splits along specific planes of weakness in its crystal structure?
Hardness
Specific gravity
Fracture
Cleavage
Cleavage is the breakage along flat, planar surfaces aligned with crystal structure. Fracture is an irregular break. Hardness and specific gravity concern scratch resistance and density. Cleavage planes are diagnostic of mineral atomic arrangement.
Which characteristic is NOT a component of crystal form in minerals?
Color
Symmetry
External shape
Internal atomic arrangement
Crystal form refers to external shape, symmetry, and internal arrangement of atoms in a mineral. Color can vary widely due to impurities and does not define crystalline structure. Therefore color is not part of crystal form criteria.
Which of the following is NOT a reference mineral on the Mohs hardness scale?
Steel pick
Topaz
Quartz
Gypsum
The Mohs scale runs from talc (1) to diamond (10) using ten reference minerals. Steel picks are tools, not minerals, and thus are not on the scale. Gypsum (2), quartz (7), and topaz (8) are all reference minerals. Steel picks may be used to test hardness but are not part of the scale itself.
Which mineral property is tested by observing fluorescence under ultraviolet light?
Fracture
Luminescence
Cleavage
Streak
Luminescence describes the emission of visible light by a mineral when exposed to UV radiation. Cleavage, streak, and fracture relate to breakage and powdered color. Fluorescence is a specific type of luminescence used to identify certain minerals like fluorite.
Which property is the least reliable for mineral identification due to variation from sample to sample?
Hardness
Luster
Cleavage
Color
Color can vary widely in the same mineral due to impurities and trace elements, making it unreliable alone. Hardness, cleavage, and luster are more consistent diagnostic properties. Geologists always confirm color-based guesses with at least one other test.
Which statement is NOT true regarding specific gravity of minerals?
It is a dimensionless quantity
It can vary with temperature
It is the ratio of mineral weight to the weight of an equal volume of water
It is numerically equal to its density in g/cm³
Specific gravity is dimensionless and defined as the ratio of a mineral's weight to that of an equal volume of water at 4 °C. It is not numerically equal to density in g/cm³, though values are similar. Temperature can affect both water density and mineral mass slightly. Therefore the statement equating it directly to density is false.
Which of the following is NOT a criterion for a substance to be classified as a mineral by the International Mineralogical Association?
Formed by biological processes
Fixed chemical composition
Naturally occurring
Inorganic
The IMA defines minerals as naturally occurring, inorganic, solid substances with a definite chemical composition and ordered internal structure. Minerals must form through geological, not biological, processes. While biominerals exist, they fall under special conventions. Thus formation by biological activity disqualifies standard mineral classification.
Which of the following mineral properties is least controlled by the atomic or crystal structure and more influenced by impurities?
Hardness
Color
Cleavage
Crystal habit
Cleavage, hardness, and crystal habit are direct results of atomic bonding and crystal lattice. Color is highly variable and often determined by trace impurities or defects within the structure rather than the ideal lattice itself. Thus color is the least structurally controlled property.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Identify Key Mineral Characteristics -

    Determine the fundamental physical attributes of minerals, including hardness, luster, and cleavage, to recognize real-world specimens.

  2. Distinguish Which Is Not a Property of Minerals -

    Learn to spot outlier characteristics that do not define minerals and confidently eliminate incorrect options during the quiz.

  3. Apply the Mohs Hardness Scale -

    Use the Mohs scale to compare and rank minerals by hardness, enhancing your practical identification skills.

  4. Evaluate Diagnostic Features -

    Assess diagnostic properties such as color, streak, and cleavage to differentiate between similar mineral samples.

  5. Interpret Quiz Questions -

    Navigate through mineral identification quiz questions with strategic reasoning and avoid common pitfalls.

  6. Self-Assess Mineral Identification Skills -

    Reflect on quiz results to measure your understanding and identify areas needing further study.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Five Defining Characteristics of Minerals -

    Minerals are naturally occurring, inorganic solids with a definite chemical composition and an ordered internal structure according to the International Mineralogical Association. Use the mnemonic "NIDOS" (Natural, Inorganic, Definite composition, Ordered structure, Solid) to lock in these criteria. This foundation will help you spot which options aren't true mineral properties.

  2. Mohs Hardness Scale -

    The Mohs scale ranks minerals by scratch resistance from talc (1) to diamond (10), originally devised by Friedrich Mohs in 1812. Try testing a fingernail (~2.5), a copper penny (~3.5) or glass (~5.5) to gauge hardness. Applying this quick field test will sharpen your skills and rule out non-properties like "taste."

  3. Luster: How Minerals Reflect Light -

    Luster describes the way light interacts with a mineral's surface - metallic, vitreous, pearly or adamantine (as seen in diamonds). The British Geological Survey notes that luster is more reliable than color, which can vary due to impurities. Remember "MVPA" (Metallic, Vitreous, Pearly, Adamantine) to ace questions on reflective qualities.

  4. Cleavage vs. Fracture Patterns -

    Cleavage is the tendency of minerals to break along specific planes of weakness (mica peels in sheets), while fracture produces irregular or conchoidal breaks (like quartz). The USGS emphasizes observing breakage to understand bond strength and crystal symmetry. Practicing both will help you discard misfits such as "malleability," which isn't a general mineral property.

  5. Streak Tests Over Color -

    While color can mislead, the streak test reveals a mineral's true powdered hue on unglazed porcelain (Mindat.org). This method separates look-alikes, like hematite's red-brown streak versus its steel-gray surface. Keep "Streak Speaks Truth" in mind to eliminate flashy distractors like "smell."

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